


now you've hit a wall and you're lost for words

by isloremipsumafterall



Category: Mass Effect: Andromeda
Genre: F/F, hearing impaired character
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-04-24
Updated: 2017-04-24
Packaged: 2018-10-23 12:40:03
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,298
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/10719513
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/isloremipsumafterall/pseuds/isloremipsumafterall
Summary: An electric discharge in a fight affects Ryder's hearing aid implants in a way that SAM can't fix right away and leaves her frightened when she can't make out much of the world around her anymore, both Scott and Vetra are there for her.





	now you've hit a wall and you're lost for words

**Author's Note:**

> It's slightly altered from what I've got but I've based Temperance's hearing disability on something I had as a child. Anything italicized is in sign language.

When the hand fell on her shoulder Temperance jumped, her heart pounding in her chest far more than it had even when she’d been facing the Archon. She whirled, ready to strike at whoever had surprised her and when she saw Scott she was able to jerk back a little in strength, only nudging him lightly in the shoulder.

 

“Don’t do that.” Temperance said, not even sure if the words came out right; her hearing implants had malfunctioned after an electric discharge had been released in the last fight they were in. Even SAM’s boost to her health hadn’t been able to fix them.

 

Typically in the past when they malfunctioned Temperance could still hear though things sounded muffled and she really had to concentrate to make out individual voices as well as where they were coming from in the room. This time however Lexi had said she’d ruptured her ear drum and now everything was even harder to hear than before.

 

Self-conscious of her voice she reached up rubbed at her ear lobe, a tick she’d developed from childhood. Feeling even more ridiculous doing it she dropped her hands to her side and sighed.

 

“ _Sorry_.” Temperance signed to Scott, not really look at him.

 

“ _You okay_?” He signed back, more a per functionary question than anything else as they both knew she wasn’t. It was after all why he’d been called on to the Tempest, probably to get her out of her room where she’d been hiding for the last few hours even when they’d docked on the Nexus.

 

“ _Did Lexi call you_?” Temperance asked, dodging Scott’s question completely.

 

“ _Vetra did. She’s worried_.”

 

 Temperance winced at that, she had sent Vetra away after she had dragged Temperance back on to the ship, not wanting Vetra to see her like that. All the sarcasm in the world couldn’t stop her fear from rearing up on her and she knew in this position she was more likely to snap at someone than anything else.

 

“ _They’re all still on board_.” Scott said a second later, making Temperance frown. “ _No one’s leaving you Peri_.”

 

Peri – only Scott and their mom ever called her that. Her dad had only used it once in her memory, when he was saying goodbye to her on Habitat 7.

 

Temperance shuffled on her feet, not sure what to say. Scott to the lead for her luckily enough and wrapped her in a hug, exaggerating his movements enough so she could see what was going on and she clutched back at him, thankful that she at least had her sibling who understood what she was going through.

 

Their memories didn’t go far back enough to when she’d first gotten the implants but Scott had been through them fritzing on her at school and learning how to handle it. While the current technology certainly made her hear like anyone else could, or at least pass off enough that she could, even it was susceptible to crashing.

 

Scott pulled back after a minute, “ _You should let them know you’re okay_.”

 

Temperance groaned, making a face, she knew she had to face the crew about this someday. They all knew the situation, she’d had to tell them in case things did go bad in a fight. Drack and her had even joked about it but she certainly didn’t feel like doing that not.

 

The last thing she wanted was for it to get out that she’d hid this as the Pathfinder and for someone to use it as sign that she didn’t deserve the title. She’d been uncertain of having it at first but had fought for the title to keep.

 

“ _At least Vetra_?” He suggested when he saw her hesitancy.

 

Temperance huffed, tugging at her ears once more but nodding. Scott was right, Vetra at least deserved to know.

 

He barely even made it a step past the door and nodded to Vetra who’d been waiting in the hall before she started walking. Scott stopped her when Vetra reached him and said something, Temperance tried not to feel so angry that she couldn’t tell what it was but she trusted Scott.

 

When he finished he walked off with one last look towards Temperance, smiling encouragingly. The doors shut behind Vetra and Temperance looked up at her, grinning nervously.

 

“Hey babe.” She said, hoping her voice didn’t shake at all. Vetra was looking at her curiously before she relaxed her shoulders, looking more than relieved that Temperance was all right. Temperance reached out to grab Vetra’s hand, pulling her a little closer. “Sorry.” She said, looking down again.

 

Vetra flipped her hand, resting it in one of hers with the palm up and with the other she traced a symbol out. The same one that Scott used to trace for her whenever she got scared.

 

_It’s all right._

 

Temperance sagged, not realizing how stressed she had been up until that moment that Vetra might have walked away. She stepped into Vetra’s space, wrapping her arms about Vetra’s wait and resting her head on her chest. “Thank you.” Temperance said, feeling the vibration of her words against Vetra’s chest.

 

Vetra pulled her closer still, dropping her head to Temperance’s hair and nuzzling just a little in assurance. She soaked in the comfort, shutting her eyes and letting herself just feel, trusting that Vetra would be there just as she would for Vetra.

 

It was a hard thing to do with some of her sense gone but Temperance felt safe, like it would all be all right. With Vetra close to her ear she could make out her speaking, nothing like distinct words, just a blur of sound but it made her feel better all the same to hear Vetra even only in that way.

 

It was a few minutes before Vetra pulled back and her mandibles flared a little in concentration as she tried to sign something. It was harder with only three fingers but Vetra still got her message across.

 

“ _I love you_.”

 

Temperance bit her lip, trying to stem the flood of emotions there and her eyes prickled a little with the edges of tears that she held back.

 

“Scott’s been teaching you.” Temperance realized after a second, laughing in delight. She then held up her hands to sign something back. “ _I love you too_.”

 

SAM suddenly came back online in her head, he’d been there the whole time but at Temperance’s request had been helping Lexi and left her to her own thoughts.

 

“Doctor T’perro has a new set of implants for you Pathfinder.” He said and Temperance shut her eyes briefly, glad to hear something even if it wasn’t in the usual sense. She’d only sent SAM off in a fit of anger and sorrow and had regretted it.

 

“Thanks SAM.” Temperance said out loud. She smiled at Vetra and reached over to take her hand, leading them to the medbay. When they reached it she shuffled slightly on her feet, her cheeks red in embarrassment as she turned to look up at Vetra. “Stay?” She asked, hoping that it got across that she was sorry to have sent Vetra away in that moment.

 

Vetra was tapping something back in to her hand at the same time she leaned down to rest her forehead against Temperance’s.

 

_Always._

 

Temperance grinned, for the first time that day since the incident feeling like herself again. Hand in hand with Vetra she walked into the medbay, her eyes sparking with humour again. “Let’s charge me up, doc.” Temperance said cheerfully, not bothering to second guess herself if it was too loud or didn’t make sense.

 

There might have been moments in the future where she got scared again, lost again, but Vetra wasn’t going to let go and neither was she.


End file.
